Stronger Dana 44 differential cover?

Good to know. I looked at the options on Rockauto for a 1999 Ram 1500.


Dana offers a cover for about $39, but it does not have a drain bolt.

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Dana also offers an iron nodular cover, but I'm not a fan of the drain bolt being exposed to shear pressure. Maybe a low profile plug could help reduce exposure, but I'm still not a fan of the functional design (or the price).

Screenshot (gray or blue offerings)

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I don't know if these would clear or not. Just listing what I noticed on RA's website after seeing @rasband's message.
IMO the lower drain bolt being there or not is overblown. It's really a non-issue. I have a drain hole in my axle housing and still always just pop the cover. Though I would recommend a lubelocker until you damage the front diff cover enough where RTV seals better :)
 
IMO the lower drain bolt being there or not is overblown. It's really a non-issue. I have a drain hole in my axle housing and still always just pop the cover. Though I would recommend a lubelocker until you damage the front diff cover enough where RTV seals better :)

I prefer to drain my pans/covers with a bolt because it reduces messes and burns less time.
 
Fair enough :) Though it's physically impossible for a small hole to exceed the draining speed of a large hole.
Lol yes. The same can be said regarding the speed of removing/installing one bolt versus 10 bolts. 😬

Also, I prefer to not break seals unless necessary.
 
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I have had ARB diff covers on for nearly ten years. They've served me well. The powder coat (I think it's powder coat) is starting to crack due to heat exchange over the years. At a glance it looks like Currie borrowed the design.

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